


Learning to balance

by Nary



Category: Adventure World (game)
Genre: Adopted Children, Aunts & Uncles, Background Poly, Carrying, Children, Cuddling & Snuggling, Family Feels, Multi, Physical Disability, Physical Therapy, Siblings, Unconventional Families
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-14
Updated: 2013-10-14
Packaged: 2017-12-29 10:45:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1004478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nary/pseuds/Nary
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Saiya liked Uncle Merlyn because as soon as he came into any room, he usually got down on the floor to sit with her and Mhireen and Macen.  He was funny, too - not just funny-looking, although he was a little of that too, but he smiled a lot and did silly things that made her laugh.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Learning to balance

Saiya liked Uncle Merlyn because as soon as he came into any room, he usually got down on the floor to sit with her and Mhireen and Macen. He was funny, too - not just funny-looking, although he was a little of that too, but he smiled a lot and did silly things that made her laugh. 

Eventually, though, he got up to sit with the grown-ups, despite all Saiya's requests, escalating into demands, that he play more. "In a little while, I promise," he told her. "My tea is getting cold, though, and that's no good at all." 

Then they were talking about boring grown-up things and Saiya stopped paying too much attention. Eventually Macen got tired and cranky and crawled up into Mommy's lap and did his trancey-nap thing, and Mhireen started making up one of his stories over at the writing desk. Saiya was getting frustrated that no one was playing with her or even paying any attention to her at all, when she realized that wasn't true - the grown-ups were talking about her! 

"... limp doesn't seem to bother her too much most of the time, she just goes along at her own pace, but she absolutely won't use a stick or anything to help her walk," Daddy was saying. "It's when she gets overtired or strains it that really shows, and seems to hurt her more." 

She came over and stuck her head around the side of Daddy's chair. "You mean me!" 

Daddy chuckled and nodded. "Yes, Saiya, we're talking about you. About your ankle, specifically." 

"Uncle Merlyn is a healer and he knows a lot about helping with injuries, even older ones," Ada explained. 

Saiya turned to Uncle Merlyn, bright-eyed. "You can fix it?" 

"Probably not fix it completely," Merlyn said, his smiling face growing more solemn. "I wish that I could. But I might be able to help it to get stronger, so it won't be as sore and so you can walk on it longer without it giving you trouble." He beckoned for her to come over, and she did, a bit more shyly now that it seemed like everyone was looking at her and being all serious. "Here, sit on my lap for a moment so I can look at it, if that's all right?" 

Saiya nodded and clambered up into his lap. He smelled of unfamiliar scents, things she couldn't quite place. The closest she could get was that it was a little like Grandma Nasira's kitchen, and a little like being out in the sun and a little like tea, although that might have been because the grown-ups had all just been drinking tea. He took her foot in between his hands, and gently moved it in all different directions. "Tell me if this hurts," he said. "Especially if it hurts more one way than another." 

"Ow!" she exclaimed when he bent it gradually back towards her leg. He stopped that right away when she said it, turning it outwards instead, but that felt worse. "Stop, I don't like it," she demanded, and he let go of her foot entirely. She leaned back against him, burrowing her face into his body so that she wouldn't cry, because she didn't want to cry right now. 

"I'm sorry," he told her, patting her on the back. "I just needed to see which ways it has trouble bending, and where it hurts more. You were very brave, though." 

"I'm always brave," she muttered. 

"That's good," he said, and when she peeked up at his face again she could see he was smiling. "Some of the jobs I'm going to give you to do might be hard sometimes, and might hurt. But if you can keep being brave and doing them as often as you can, I do think your ankle will get stronger. And for the things we can't fix that way, your parents might be able to get you some special shoes that would help support your ankle." 

Saiya pulled a face - she didn't like shoes at the best of times, although in the winter she tolerated them. "What sort of jobs?" she asked, focusing on the part that sounded less annoying. 

"Stand up and I'll show you," he told her. Saiya got down from his lap eagerly, and he stood up too. "One of your jobs is going to be to stand on one foot as much as you can. You can stand on your foot that hurts, and that's good for making it grow stronger, but even practicing standing on your other foot will help your balance get better." He showed her how he meant, drawing one foot up to rest on the inside of his thigh. 

She tried doing as he demonstrated, but could only hold it for a moment before she started to topple over. Merlyn caught her before she fell, though. "I know it's hard. You can start by putting your foot lower down, like here on your calf instead." He helped her put her foot into a better position, steadying her with his other hand. "You can hold your arms out too, that will help you balance," he told her. "The closer you pull in your arms, the harder it gets." He winked, smiling in the way that crinkled his eyes at the edges. "Maybe you can make a game of it with your brothers, and see who can balance longest."

"Yeah!" she exclaimed. Limping across the room to her older brother, she tugged on his arm. "Mhireen, come play the balance game with me, I'm gonna win!" Soon they were both giggling and falling over into one another, making Mommy and Daddy and Ada and Uncle Merlyn all laugh too. And after he finished his tea, Uncle Merlyn got back down on the floor again to catch them when they tumbled to the carpet (or mostly to tickle them when they fell down, really.) 

By the time Miss Jindra came to take her and Mhireen and Macen for bedtime, Saiya was snuggled in Uncle Merlyn's lap, exhausted and half-asleep already. "Don't worry about it," she sort of heard him say, even over Ada's protests. "I'll carry her up." She wrapped her arms around his neck and held on tight as he lifted her to take her up to the nursery. 

"I coulda walked," she mumbled into his shoulder as they went up the stairs.

"I know you could have," he told her quietly. "But next time I come back to visit, you'll be walking everywhere on your own, and much too big for me to carry - so let me enjoy it while it lasts."

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on Tumblr at [naryrising](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/naryrising) if you want to ask questions, make requests, or chat!


End file.
